Production Diaries:
June 2004
July 2004
August 2004
September 2004
October 2004
Recent Entries:
HUNDREDS GATHER TO PAY TRIBUTE TO THE LATE MAKO IWAMATSU IN CAGES!
Wed, 14 Nov 2007
A SPECIAL TRIBUTE SCREENING OF MAKO!
Tue, 16 Oct 2007
Perles Acquires Cages Distribution!
Wed, 01 Aug 2007
"CAGES" RUNS 4TH WEEK IN THEATRES!
Fri, 13 Apr 2007
IT'S MY TURN TO FLY!
Mon, 09 Apr 2007
"CAGES" SURPRISES MANY AS IT ENTERS THIRD WEEKEND IN THEATRES!
Fri, 06 Apr 2007
"CAGES" ENTERS THIRD WEEK IN THEATRES!
Tue, 03 Apr 2007
LOYAL FOLLOWING TO THANK, AS "CAGES" ENTERS THIRD WEEK IN THEATRES!
Mon, 02 Apr 2007
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Coordinating the Fight, by Yu-Beng Lim
10/29/04
I’ve never written a blog, so this’ll be brief. I came into this project by accident. My wife Kheng Hua plays Ali (an unusual name for a Singaporean Chinese woman) the lead, and one day I hear she has a fight scene to do with the Ethan character, her lover. I remember the scene from reading the script, and remark that I don’t think it should be treated as a fight scene per se, but a dramatic scene like any other, with the violence an organic outcome of the dramatic action. Next thing I know, Graham’s looking for a fight choreographer, and wonders if I’m interested.
Now, most of my fight choreography work has been for stage, where the audience point of view is fixed, and the action is continuous. I’ve directed fight scenes for television, but always with a stunt coordinator doing the actual beat to beat choreography. I directed the actors more than the action. And principally I’m an actor with a smattering of martial arts exposure, who happens to have done plenty of stunt and fight work on various film, television and stage sets. So to design action for the camera was a perfect development for me professionally, and a chance to work those camera sensibilities in a way I had been wanting to for some time. I said yes. How could I not, my wife was gonna be slugged by Bobby (who plays Ethan), a six foot one ex-baseball player, who had a very good connection with emotional violence! Kheng, by the way is five foot two, and used to be a gymnast. Yeah. Wide frames, huh.
Well, no. The great thing was both Graham and Mark, our DOP, saw the action exactly as I did, an extension of the emotional turmoil within. And you gotta be close to see that. So the scene was shot with a deliberate sense of claustrophobia, in a tight space not much larger than an elevator, catching the characters’ every nuance. All of us wanted the emotional story to be key, and the violence to support that. I relished the openness, the cross referencing and checking with each other that built the scene step by step. Each shot was an acting shot, and when we did pull back it was to reveal an atmosphere and environment soaked in the emotional colour of the scene. I don’t think Mark even stopped to eat (sorry guys, did I just blow the union whistle?), he was so involved, so meticulous and painstaking upon himself that he just kept going all day. The actors were just as determined, repeating moves till every hit looked like there was contact, each surge had the necessary velocity to contain the violence within. I needn’t have worried about my wife, by the way. Not that I ever did, she can take care of herself pretty damn well, thank you! But the way Graham looked out for her and everybody’s safety, it was clear he valued humanity above all else.
I’m glad I did it. And I’m grateful that Graham used me and worked with me in such an open and giving way. I mean, it’s his movie, he could have just laid down the law. But I think he feels that once you’re making it, it moves from just being your own to something else that you can only make collectively, and it did. It was a good shoot, great DP, a hardworking and sincere cast and crew. Thanks everybody, I had a great time. And I’ll jump to work with any of you again.
Lim Yu-Beng
Fight choreographer
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